Oracle
by Ed Azalea
Summary: Noah Wright is one of the most powerfull specials alive. But when the son of two fugitives is contacted by Professor Charles Xavier, he'll have to learn to make his own way in the world. Noah/OC. On Hiatus unless people start asking for it :P
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

The young man walked down the cracked sidewalk, shaggy blond hair hanging in his eyes and i-pod head phones stuck in his ears as his head moved slightly along with the music, ignoring the chaos and rowdiness of the teenagers around him as he moved into more and more highly populated areas around the dilapidated old school building. While it was true that this wasn't a particularly nice area of Queens, and the decrepit buildings around him certainly helped to prove that point, any one who was open minded could see that the kids milling about outside the school were a community, with very little tension existing amongst their ranks.

He made his way up the steps, nodding his greetings and a faint smile to all of his friends who called out to him as he made his way into the crowded halls of the building. The AC was out again, and the halls were warm and stifling with the pressing of so many bodies, but after ducking into the secretaries office he felt a wave of cool air pass over him as a rotating fan aimed itself momentarily at the door. Pulling out his head phones, he turned off his I-pod and pocketed it, flashing a calm, winning smiled over at the pudgy older woman sitting behind the front desk.

"Morning Doris. How're Peaty and Monty doing this fine morning?"

"Noah! Good morning to you too, deary! They boys are doing just fine, thanks for asking. Although Ms. Roberts down the street keeps asking for Monty to breed with that mangy little mutt she calls a poodle. As if he would ever be interested in such a thing," the older woman huffed and Noah had to hide a laugh at her indignation. The woman was fiercely overprotective of her prize winning beagles, and had no tolerance for incompetence, but was otherwise one of the nicest souls he'd ever met. "Oh! Before I forget, the Dean wanted to see you this morning. Some people from a school are asking after you or something and he wanted you to see them before you started in on today's filing. Did you submit an early application without telling me, sweat heart?"

"Come now Doris, you know I'd never do such a thing to you," Noah said comfortingly, trying to quell the woman's nervous concern as he looked curiously at the Dean's closed door himself, dark eyebrows knit tightly together, before turning back to the older woman and flashing her a small, calming smile.

Doris smiled warmly back before turning back to her own filing as Noah eyed the door. Walking down the small hall that hid the Dean's door in the back of the front office, he knocked twice softly, immediately receiving a clearly spoken "Come in!"

Noah opened the door and stood just inside the office, waiting politely for further instruction as he did a quick mental inventory of the occupants. An older bald man in a wheel chair and a beautiful young African American woman in her early thirties stood on one side of the desk, the Dean on the other side gesturing for Noah to come further in and close the door. Noah did so and approached the desk.

"You asked to see me, sir?"

"Yes, yes my boy! This is Professor Charles Xavier and Miss Ororo Monroe from the Xavier Institute in Westchester. It seems that you've peeked their interest," the Dean said warmly, beaming with pride as Noah shook both their hands.

"It's a pleasure to meet you both," he said politely.

"The pleasure is all ours Mr. Wright," Professor Xavier said cordially, shaking Noah's hand firmly. "We've been looking through your academic and extra curricular records- they're really quite impressive. 4.0 GPA, all honors and AP courses, star of the soccer team, founder of both your schools Invisible Children Chapter as well as the Community Outreach Program, Class President and student body representative for the Academic Reform Committee. You are also apparently quite an accomplished musician."

"I wouldn't exactly consider the guitar and piano a great accomplishment," Noah said simply, a quaint smile on his face as he shifted somewhat wearily before the two representatives. "Dean, can I borrow your office for a few minutes to talk with the Professor and Ms. Monroe alone?"

"Oh! No problem Noah, I'll just leave you three to chat," the Dean said after he had realized that Noah was addressing him directly. He smiled fondly at the boy and clapped him warmly on the shoulder as he made his way out of the office. One the door was shut behind him Noah waited for a few moments as the Dean walked down the narrow hall before turning back to the rooms two other occupants.

"Ok, cut the crap. Why are you here and what do you want?" Noah said bluntly, but not maliciously. His shoulders loose and demeanor relaxed he took a step towards the Professor, looking him sharply in the eye. "I know you're not interested in my grades."

"On the contrary Noah, we happen to be very interested in your academic success," the Professor began languidly. "I run a very… select… boarding school in Westchester. Given your current academic record I see no reason why you would not receive not only acceptance but also a full scholarship as well."

"My Junior year ends in a month… you want me to transfer to a boarding school for just my last year of high school?" Noah asked incredulously.

"You misunderstand," Miss Monroe spoke up for the first time since their meeting began. "With your academic record there is very little in the way of courses that we could offer you. You would be enrolled full time at NYU's nearest campus while still living at the Xavier Institute and finishing up your final core curriculum for high school as well as participating in our own specialized courses which are mandatory for all students."

"We are very aware of just how special you really are Noah," the Professor added kindly. _'And we would like the opportunity to help show you how to reach your full potential.'_

It took Noah a second or two to realize that the voice he had just heard was, in point of fact, coming from inside his own head. He fixed Xavier with a pointed glare.

"I don't appreciate other people being in my head Professor, and you needn't provide such an ardent display of your abilities either. I am well aware of the fact that you are a telepath, and that Miss Monroe is a tempesta-kinetic. I knew it from the moment I shook your hands."

"Very impressive Mr. Wright," the Professor acknowledged honestly. "I feel I must apologize for my brief intrusion into your thoughts. It is not often that we find a young man so in control of both himself and his abilities. More often than not, a practical demonstration is required to gain a students trust."

"Makes sense," Noah acquised. He moved to lean against the desk, half sitting on it as he crossed his arms over his chest thoughtfully. "Teenagers, newly manifested and already dealing with the normal out of control hormones on top of that. It would make sense that a more… blunt approach would be required. But that is where you made your mistake Professor."

"Oh?" the Professor asked politely. "And where was that?"

"I've had my powers since I was born," Noah said bluntly. "I'm betting you have some way to track people with abilities…"

"Mutants," the Professor supplied. "We are collectively known as mutants now."

"Okay then, mutants," Noah grimaced at the term but refrained from comment. "But as my ability is largely passive I highly doubt that I would have been picked up by your radars until, oh… about a week ago I would guess?"

"I don't suppose you would care to tell me what happened that would suddenly bring about a more… active side of your abilities?"

"Not particularly," Noah admitted bluntly. "I don't know you and despite my ability I don't really trust you quite yet."

"That's a bit paranoid, don't you think?" Miss Monroe asked gently. When Noah's intense blue eyes fixed on her, dark and intelligent despite their color, she had to repress a shudder from moving down her spine.

"It's only paranoid if the world _isn't_ really out to get you. But we both know better than that don't we Ms. Monroe? Or do I need to remind you of the abductions that were televised in early 2008? Normal citizens being rounded up like criminals and taken away from their homes in the dead of night?"

Ororo shifted uncomfortably and was desperately relieved when the Professor cleared his throat, drawing Noah's attention back to him. Picking up the formal looking packet from the desk, he handed Noah the school's information.

"Here's everything you need to know about the school. There is a cd in here as well concerning our more… private educational opportunities. Please don't download it onto your computer, just watch it. Also, here is my business card with my private number- you may contact me anytime you wish, day or night, and I will answer," Noah took the proffered packet, briefly thumbing through it's extensive contents before looking back up at the Professor's earnest expression. "I hope that you will accept our offer. Even if you do have control over your own abilities, I believe you will find it an interesting experience to be surrounded by other people your own age who have gone through similar experiences, not to mention the benefit alone to your education. I hardly think a watchmakers salary is going to be able to get you into NYU for more than a semester," Noah glared at the pointed barb and Xavier relented, raising his hands in surrender. "Just think about it my boy, that's all I ask."

Noah looked down at the informational packet in his hands, bound in an engraved and embossed navy blue folder with the schools name and logo on the front. Inside, tucked amongst all the various folders and informational packets, was a small card on 'Campus life'. The packet was thin, no bigger than a Hallmark card, containing only a few quotes and a list of activities the students often partook in, but that wasn't what had caught his attention. The picture on the front of the packet was what had drawn his eyes. It was obvious the students hadn't realized they were being photographed as the camera man had probably stood in what seemed to be the corner of a great hall. One could see portions off a grand entrance and a kitchen behind and to the left, and the room behind the camera man seemed as if it would have been a living or sitting room based an what could be seen of it in the photo. A girl with her brown hair pulled back into a pony tail and a pink cardigan had her hands on her hips and was glaring at a boy with blond hair who, for some reason, was sitting in a pile of snow in the middle of the hall. A black boy with bleached blond hair was gliding down the stair railing on a skate board as another boy with deep black hair, almost blue, was pointing and laughing at the blond. Another girl with gothic clothing and short brown hair framed with white streaks was caught in mid eye roll at the spectacle was standing next to a beautiful mocha skinned girl with dark auburn hair who was obviously trying not to laugh. Noah couldn't hide from the truth captured in this simple picture, he could never escape the truth, not since he'd been a little baby. These people, these teenagers, they weren't just friends… they were a family. Noah felt his stomach clench uncomfortably at that thought, though he couldn't quite pinpoint down why.

"So?" Noah looked up to see the Dean looking excitedly down at him, it took him a second to realize that both the Professor and Miss Monroe must have left some time ago. Noah blinked a few times up at the older man, not quite sure what he meant. "How did it go? What did they want?"

From around the corner of the door frame he could see Doris peering in surreptitiously… or at least it would have been surreptitious if Sarah from bankrolling wasn't also trying to pear in, leaning over Doris's shoulder to do so.

"They, uh… they offered me a place at their school," Noah said uncertainly, still regarding the photo with a sad sort of distraction.

"You're going to change schools for your last year of high school?" the Dean said uncertainly. He shook his head mildly, some of the excitement leaving as confusion took it's place. "Well, Xavier Institute is a very prestigious school but… just for one year?"

"Uh, not exactly," Noah said, shifting slightly as he stood up straighter, taking his weight off the desk and clearing his throat uncertainly. "I'd attend a few classes there and live there but… they said they…"

Noah hadn't even realized he'd trailed off when Doris's shrill voice cut through the small office. She and Sarah had not longer been able to restrain themselves behind the open door frame and were now standing huddled by the Dean. "Well? Spit is out Noah! What did they say?"

Noah glanced up briefly before looking back at the folder again and clearing his throat. "They said… they said that they could get me into NYU on an early acceptance program with a full scholarship."

Doris squealed shrilly and Noah soon found himself ensconced in the woman's large, beefy arms as she squeezed the breath from his midsection. Sarah had wrapped herself around his shoulders as the Dean wrestled one of Noah's hand free from the ladies grasp and shook it vigorously.

"Congratulations my boy! Oh I am so proud of you! I knew you would do great things in this world! This is only just the beginning for you I am sure!" the Dean commended, positively beaming with pride as he continued to shake Noah's hand.

"Oh! Wait until we tell your mother! She'll be so proud of you! And your father! Oh I just can't wait to call them…"

"No!" Noah cut off quickly, making everyone start and pull back slightly to look at the boy as Noah tried to hide his face, ashamed of his outburst. "I mean, uh, no. I want to tell them myself, uh, in person."

Doris looked at him doubtfully for a moment but eventually relented, thinking to herself that she would never understand the inner workings of this wonderfull boys mind. "Well alright dear… if you insist."

"I do," Noah said quickly, maybe even a little too quickly. He took a breath and spoke more calmly and slowly the second time. "I do."

"Just make sure you tell them soon deary, I don't think I can stop myself from bragging about you for _too_ long," Doris said kindly, smoothing out the shirt that had been wrinkled by their aggressive hugging as she smiled at him.

"I will," Noah promised softly. "Promise. I'll tell them tonight, at dinner. I just… I kind of want it to be in person, okay?"

Doris nodded understandingly, giving his shoulder a final loving squeeze as he left the room. He knew that they were all still watching him as he left, still running on auto pilot, but he couldn't stop himself from starring at the picture still held in his hands. He knew exactly what his parents would say about such an opportunity… and that was precisely the problem.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

"Noah! Could you take the coffee pot of the burner and start topping off some of these customers cups for me?"

"Sure thing mom!" Noah called back across the happy bustle of the little café. Once an old warehouse, 'Tick Tocks' was now a bustling little place with a high roof, lots of windows and open area. The front doors opened up to a view of delicious pies and baked goods, along with some of the best coffee in town. The serving counter also sold salads, soups, sandwiches, and even simple hot meals for dinner. Noah dumped his book bag beneath the counter and slung and apron over his school clothes before picking up the coffee pot and wandering about the various tables closest to the counter, topping off peoples coffee's and making idle chit chat as he went.

To the left the shop opened up into what must have once been a rather big work space, but was now a large open seating area that also contained a few old fashioned pinball and packman games and an old clock tower in the center. The old foreman's office ran along the top of the back wall, probably so that he could oversee the workers, but was now home to Tick Tock's name sake, a little watch shop that catered to most of the New York area. Broken watch, clock, timepiece- Gabriel Wright could fix just about anything. Didn't matter what make, model, or even era the piece was from. If the spare parts still existed, or even if he could jerry rig another part, then he could fix it. And for a reasonable price too.

Business had been booming for as long as Noah could remember. But he knew it wasn't always that way. When he was just a little baby, he knew that the neighborhood had a serious gang problem, and that the warehouse was the epicenter of a booming drug trade. One of the down sides of always knowing the truth was that you couldn't hide from it, not even if you wanted to. But one day, at least as far as the police were concerned, the gangs and drug lords had all simply disappeared and a man had come forward offering to buy the otherwise derelict piece of property. Less than six months, a few business permits and some cosmetic renovations later, Tick Tocks had opened it's doors to business with an almost immediate response. With the gangs no longer roaming the streets, three different schools funneled their kids and teachers past this block every day on the commute, as well as the fact that it was only in the center of a ring of high capacity jobs- meaning a big lunch hour rush. The place had become so popular that when Noah was eight someone had petitioned and succeeded in changing the main bus route from six blocks over so that there was a stop right in front of the café. An old newspaper clipping framed and hung proudly on the wall showed a beaming young couple, a petite and very pretty blond woman and a tall, dark haired man standing in front of a brand new bus sign with an equally excited dirty blond haired boy standing before them, grinning from ear to ear as he held up Tick Tock's signature- an old cuckoo clock rescued from a garage sale- wrapped safely in his arms. The caption below read _'Elle and Gabriel Wright with son Noah in front of rising local café'_. Since then that single stop sign had been expanded to include a full depot; bench, covered awning and all.

Noah looked over to where his mother was topping off someone's coffee, chatting amicably with the regular and his wife, new to their little home away from home, as she laughed at something the man had said. Blond hair tied up in a high pony tail, blue eyes sparkling as she laughed. Her slim figure partially hidden by the little white apron she wore, it was accentuated at her tiny waist where it tied behind her back in a neat, perfect little bow. White, pink and grey sneakers only added to her apparent shortness, but his mother had consistently refused to wear heals. 'Only masochists torture themselves for a few extra inches sweat heart,' had been her response when he'd asked her about it once. Confused, the six year old had gone upstairs to ask his father what a masochist was only to see the older dark haired man have coffee exploding from his nose as he collapsed into a very painful belly laugh.

His mother had always said his father was a very handsome man, and that he had inherited most of his features from him, but she was proud to take credit for his blond hair and blue eyes. His strong, angular features, dark, expressive eyebrows, strong jaw and straight nose were most definitely his fathers. Even his mothers genetic contributions had been darkened somewhat by his dad's features. Her light blond hair and highlights had turned dirty blond on his head, inheriting his fathers thickness and consequent messiness as well. And though his mothers eyes flashed grey when truly angry, his turned such a deep cerulean blue that it could nearly be confused with the dark black that his fathers brown eyes turned when angry.

He had only seen his fathers eyes turn black once, and though he had complete and total faith in his father, as any five year old would have, the expression on the older mans face when a gang banger had returned from the old days and threatened himself and his mother, had unnerved him somewhat. His father hadn't responded at all to the threats made upon his own life, but when the gang banger had turned his gun on the pretty blond twenty eight year old and the little boy held tightly to her knees… he hoped he never saw that look again. It was in that instant that little Noah had known the truth about his father. About how the man was capable of doing truly anything, and that he and his mother were the only ones holding him back. He knew that his father would never hurt him or his mother, and that he would never want to hurt anyone else for that matter. The thought of what he was ultimately capable of if he lost control of the monster living inside of him…

"Noah, sweet heart, could you go tell your father that we need more coffee when he gets a chance?" his mom asked sweetly from across the room. Translation: make sure your father hasn't buried himself in his work and forgotten to eat lunch.

Noah smiled and nodded. "Sure thing mom."

The stair case to the foreman's office ran across the back of the warehouse, behind the tables, opening down into the seating area of the café by the small kitchen and leading up to a tastefully decorated hall with beige carpet and a small seating area that might once have been a tiny break room. Complete with a fake potted plant, the area looked like the lobby of a dentist. But instead of the smell of toothpaste, the mixture of clock oil and baked goods filled the area with an aroma that Noah had only ever been able to describe as 'home'.

The door to the office was propped open by a large, heavy book leaning against it entitled 'Crystalography- the refraction of patterns throughout the physical world'. Noah tried not to snort at his fathers eclectic taste in books. He happened to know for a fact his father had picked the heavy tome up at a garage sale for a quarter and finished reading it only two days latter. It wasn't uncommon for either father or son to read their way through more than one obscure book each and every night, as neither one seemed to require more than two to four hours of sleep, despite his mothers insistence that they all have an early bed time. But hey- since when did being in bed translate to actually having to sleep?

Sure enough, as his mom had suspected, his father was sitting at his desk, nestled in amongst a pile of wires and gear and tools and watches awaiting their turn to be fixed like soldiers in a little line. Even as he watched his father, complete with his some-what ridiculous super magnifying glasses, snapped the back onto one watch, newly completed, checked a box on the paper ID tag hanging from the band, and set it aside, picking up a crystal works clock just as soon as he put the watch down. Sitting next to him, completely forgotten as it rested upon a stack of files, was a half eaten turkey sandwich and some macaroni salad.

"Hey Dad?" Noah asked quietly as he entered the dim office. How his father could work with so little light was beyond him, but as the windows looking out over the store floor weren't quite enough to let in a great deal of light and he had refused them installing halogens in his office, most of the light for the room came from a dim standing lamp in a far corner of the room, nestled between varying filing cabinets and box shelves of miscellaneous parts and the old fashioned desk lamp shining dutifully on the corner of the grand mahogany desk. His father looked up expectantly, but apparently unsurprised at his son's sudden appearance. Noah couldn't help but choke back a laugh when he saw his dad's eyes, magnified ten times due to his ridiculous work glasses, looking back at him. "Forget something?" he pointed to the half eaten sandwich and watched his fathers super magnified bug eyes follow in the direction indicated.

"Oh! Well, I meant to finish that. It's not that late…" a low growl from his fathers stomach cut off any further arguments as Noah laughed, honestly and openly for the first time in what felt like a long while, at his fathers creeping blush. Moving carefully so as not to spill anything or drop any crumbs, he quickly tore a few more bites out of the rapidly diminishing sandwich, chewed for a half a second, and then shoveled in some of the macaroni salad. While Gabriel Wright was usually a neat and meticulous man, he did not have the best of table manners- especially not when he was working alone in his office, a place that he considered to be solely his domain.

'It's my office, in my shop. Why should I have to bother with white table cloths and three sizes of forks in my own room?'

It struck Noah that his parents were not very much ones for pretense, believing it to only be a nuisance at best, and a version of a lying at worst, something that neither one of his parents could or would tolerate.

"Did you need something son?" his father asked concernedly, snapping Noah from his little revelry.

"No. Sorry, just thinking," Noah answered nonchalantly.

"You're powers aren't acting up again are they?" It always amazed Noah how his father could go from zero to panicked in the blink of an eye. He had to fight down a loving smirk as he held his hands out, calmly placating the now honestly worried man before him.

"Everything's fine dad. I was just thinking about some stuff." This seemed to calm him a little bit, but Gabriel was obviously still worried. "Can I do my homework in here until dinner time?"

And Bingo. Noah hit the nail on the head as his fathers shoulders relaxed significantly and the older man smiled at him, all worry gone now that he knew he would be able to keep an eye on his son while he worked. He knew the boy didn't need any protection, not with that ability of his, but, damn it, he was the boys father and it was a fathers prerogative to worry.

"Sure thing Noah," Noah smiled and began to go downstairs when Gabriel tentatively called him back. "Don't suppose you could grab me a cup of coffee while you're down there?"

Noah smiled congenially and nodded before disappearing out the door and down the stairs, back into the hustle and bustle of the calm but busy little shop.

"Do you really think the boy's going to take us up on our offer Charles?" Ororo Monroe asked the bald head currently starring out his grand office windows from his wheel chair.

"I'm sure of it Ororo. The boy may be bright, popular, and have full control over his ability, but we still have something to offer him." Ororo looked at the Professor questioningly and Xavier just glanced back at her with a reassuring smile. "Peers. Real true peers- people his own age going through all the same things he's gone through. A support system built upon friendship and common ground rather than convenience."

"But… his powers…"

"They are unpredictable. We will have to keep a tight leash on what we allow him to see. If the boy ever decided to rogue… we could all be in very grave danger."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Noah was still working quietly on his Calculus homework when his mother came upstairs a moment later, not pausing as she went to the dumbwaiter hidden in one of the support columns downstairs that came out just a few feet ahead of her husbands desk. Stalling only briefly to clear a pile of papers from the otherwise cleared coffee table that sat nestled between a rather worn but comfortable old pull out couch and a big squishy arm chair. Setting the files aside, on top of another already leaning stack of papers, she pulled out the tray from the dumbwaiter and set it down on the now cleared coffee table. Noah had already set aside his books and sat up straight when he saw his mother enter the room, but his fathers attention only perked up as the smells coming from two very hearty servings of chicken pot pie casserole and one lightly smaller serving were wafting eagerly throughout the room.

It being seven o'clock, business downstairs had mostly slowed as the usually modest dinner rush ebbed away and the evening birds had yet to come. Luke, his mothers long time employee and practically a member of the family, would be able to manage just fine with Lucy running the counter and Zoë in the back starting the morning prep and evening breakdown. Regardless of schedules and even if the café was flooded with customers, the Wrights had dinner together every night in Gabriel's dim little office. Laughing and talking over their days with one another as they ate their way through healthy sized portions of whatever was being served for dinner downstairs that night. Noah happily ate his way through his mothers delicious chicken pot pie casserole and sipped on his iced tea as the blond woman chatted about a customer who had come in earlier asking if she could bake them a wedding _pie_. Apparently the couple were so in love with her pies that they wanted to order several for their wedding instead of cakes, with one special smaller pie for the bride and groom.

"Well I told you that you make the best pies in the whole world," his father teased lightly. "Maybe now you'll finally listen to me."

"Oh, you!" Elle playfully swatted Gabriel on the arm with the dishtowel that was perpetually slung over her shoulder before reaching in and giving him a quick kiss. "Enough about pies. How was you're day Noah? Everything alright at school?"

Noah tensed only slightly at his mothers innocent question, one she had asked him every single night since he'd started kindergarten, even more so since his powers had started manifesting more actively. But that slight tension was more than enough to alert his overly observant parents to his discomfort.

"Noah? What's wrong sweetie?" his mother asked, her voice thick with worry that always seemed to spring up out of nowhere. Noah knew what was wrong. He knew how his parents would feel about him being around others like him. He knew how afraid his father would be of loosing his already tenuous grip on his control. Seeing the worry in their eyes though, he knew he couldn't do it. He couldn't make them worry any more than they already were, but he also knew he couldn't pass up this kind of opportunity. Forget having friends, and believe you me that was no easy thing to just forget, this was the education that he knew his parents had always dreamed of for him. Noah took a deep breath, hating himself for what he was about to do.

"Some people came to my school today to talk to me," he started simply. He could instantly feel the shift in the room as his fathers fork froze halfway to his mouth and his mothers back went rigid.

"People?" his mother asked hoarsely.

Noah held out a placating had before continuing. "They weren't from the company or Pinehearst and while I don't completely and totally trust them yet, you guys have taught me better than that, they didn't send off any alarms or tingling."

"So… what did they want?" his father asked patiently, his fork still frozen in midair and apparently forgotten. Noah gave a concerning glance towards his parents before sliding his back pack out from underneath the couch and pulling out the navy blue fancy embossed packet and handing it over to his mothers waiting and confused hands.

"Their from a school in Westchester. A very private and exclusive school," he let that little bit of information sink in, carefully examining their expressions as they looked between him and flipping through the professional looking pages of the packet. "Someone apparently submitted my name to them and when they looked into my school records they came in person to offer me both a position at their school and a full ride."

His mothers eyebrows disappeared into her hairline at that as his father continued to look dubiously at the packet. "They want you to transfer schools for your last year of high school? Are you _sure_ they're legit?"

"Yeah dad, I'm sure." He made sure both his parents were looking him in the eye when he next spoke, choosing his words as carefully as a bomb tech would choose which wires to cut. "They're not offering me a position for high school."

"I'm confused," his mother interrupted, shaking her head and making her blond pony tail sway as she looked at her son. Noah held out his hand again, silently asking her to be patient, and waited for her to settle before continuing.

"I would finish out my core credits for high school with them, as well as taking on several required specialized classes that the school offers. But then… they're offering me free room and board at their school and… a full ride to NYU on early acceptance."

His parents were starring at him with wide eyes as his fathers forgotten fork clattered down to his plate, totally ignored as bits of chicken and peas flew across the table and his fathers pants. He didn't know how long he sat there for, closely watching his parents blank expressions before something finally seemed to click in his mothers eyes and she launched herself at her son with an ear shattering scream, wrapping up the startled boy in a rib bruising hug as his father finally shook some sense back into his head and launched himself on top of the both of them, practically lifting them off the ground with his own lung crushing embrace. With praises of how proud they were of him and how much they would always love him, no matter what, washing over him, Noah felt a little piece of his soul fall away.

Luke was in the kitchen with Zoë when he heard the scream, hands aimed at the slowly heating pot on the stove before him, little ripples of kinetic energy flooding their way towards the pot like a current in a quiet stream. Metal was always tricky to work with- if you heated it too fast you could either spark the metal or burn the food inside of it, but if you heated it too slowly then the pot wouldn't be able to retain the heat and the center of the pot would never get warm and the food wouldn't cook. Zoë was to his left, half hidden by the open doorway that lead out to the back alley, still light by the dying sunlight and the flickering of the street lamps as they turned on. Since they all lived near by they'd gotten a special permit to remove the employee parking spaces in back and replace them with a small garden. The twenty three year old African American girl was currently busy trying to quietly convince a young tomato plant to give her just one more tomato. He had to bite back a laugh as she crooned at the plant, waving her hands around the thing lovingly as it granted her the desired tomato before turning back into the kitchen, leaving the back door open to help create a cross breeze and relieve some of the heat that tended to accumulate in the tiny kitchen. Lucy was upfront manning the counter, the otherwise short tempered girl putting on her sweetest smile to deal with customers, discreetly cutting out the window displays for next morning behind the counter.

"Tony is so reluctant to produce, I'm starting to think he may have performance anxiety but it makes absolutely no sense! I mean, he always produces the sweetest tomatoes out of any of them. Why should he be self conscious?"

"Why do you have to diagnose a psychiatric condition for a plant?" The thirty two year old teased mildly, receiving a glare in return.

"Just because their not human doesn't mean they don't have feelings Luke,"

Luke was about to retort when he heard the scream echo out from upstairs. Abandoning his pot he quickly stuck his head out the kitchen door to see every single customer as well as the twenty six year old red head manning the front looking towards the stairs in a mixture of shock and alarm. Ripping off his apron Luke bounded up the stairs, hands already warming as he prepared for the attack that they'd all feared since he'd moved in with his new found family when he was fifteen. When he got up to the office though he wasn't at all prepared for the sight before him. Elle had wrapped her son up in a smothering hug, with Gabriel's wide, strong arms wrapped around the both of them. They were both talking excitedly and when, after a few moments, no one seemed to notice his presence he coughed pointedly, only to have Elle and Gabriel round on him with smiles so wide it looked like their faces were threatening to tear in half.

"Uhm… most of the people downstairs are probably like two minutes away from calling 911 right now so…" before Luke could even finish his sentence Gabriel had bolted past him and down the stairs, Elle following closely behind after giving Noah one last kiss on the top of his head. He turned to ask Noah what was going on when Gabriel's voice echoed throughout the whole of the warehouse.

"My son got a full ride to NYU!" If the eruption of applause was any indication, then Luke wouldn't have to worry about trying to explain a misunderstanding to the police today. Looking back to Noah with a smile on his face, he was surprised to see the young man grimacing at him.

"I take it you're not exactly as thrilled as they are?" he asked carefully.

Noah just looked at the older man that he had always been able to tell anything to and sighed tiredly, his eyes clearly showing the pain that hiding this from his parents was causing him. "I got accepted into a prestigious boarding school in Westchester. They offered my the early acceptance NYU ride when they figured they wouldn't be able to get me any other way."

"What's so wrong with that?" Luke asked curiously. He could see how it might wound Noah's sensibilities, but hey, a free ride was a free ride.

"It's a very _select _school," Noah said slowly, not even really sure if he should be telling Luke this. But he had to tell someone, and he had always been able to trust Luke before. "For students with very _particular _talents."

"A school for specials?" Luke asked, surprise, astonishment, and incredulity all swirling around his expressive face. Noah just nodded. "…Wow…"

"Apparently we're collectively referred to as _'mutants' _now, but yeah." Noah saw the distasteful look on Luke's face and was glad he wasn't the only one who wasn't exactly overly fond of the term.

"And you're going to go?"

"I think so," Noah admitted quietly. "Give it a shot at least. If all else fails I'll still have already been accepted and given scholarships to NYU so it shouldn't be too much trouble to keep that deal going once I've got my foot in the door."

Luke nodded appraisingly. "Good plan. But what happens when you're parents want to visit you? I know you're dad's control has been getting better but… with that many specials in one place…"

"I know," Noah conceded. "But it's a closed campus and I figure if I come home often enough they wont feel the need to visit me. I'll try to organize something controlled sooner or later so that they don't get too suspicious… I have to do this Luke."

Luke turned to look at the boy next to him, the boy who was rapidly becoming a man, and smiled. "Yeah, I guess you do…. We'd better go downstairs before you're parents get worried."

Noah nodded and with a long, drawn out sigh, the two of them descended to stair case to find an impromptu party had already somehow been assembled as his dad passed out party hats while doing some weird sort of jig and his mother pirouetted off one of the benches and onto the floor, the gathered regular customers all moving in to congratulate him firmly as Noah forced a smile onto his face.

"Professor Charles Xavier here," came the somewhat tired voice of the aging Professor as he answered the phone sitting in front of him on his desk. It was nearly eleven o'clock at night and he was a little surprised at who would be calling him this late, but answered anyways. He wasn't disappointed when he heard the voice on the other end of the line. "Mr. Wright. It's good to hear from you my boy. What can I help you with this evening?"

Xavier waited while the voice on the other end of the line spoke before he replied.

"I'm very glad to hear that…. Yes, yes, yes. We can begin signing you up for classes in the morning…. Have you talked it over with your family?… Yes, we feel that new students who begin in the summer have a greater success rate of socialization and feel more confident in their new setting when term starts. We are also able to perform a more individualized evaluation of where you stand both academically and… in other fields…. Yes, of course. You should speak this over with your parents first. I hope to be seeing you soon my boy. Sleep well."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

The cab pulled up to the large estate, the driver not able to hold back a wolf whistle as they came into view of the huge mansion. He glanced back at the shaggy haired boy in the back, taking in the obviously second hand ripped jeans, duct taped sneakers, plain white T-shirt and unbuttoned blue flannel over shirt.

"Not to be rude kid, but you sure this is the right place?" he asked as they waited to be buzzed in the tall, wrought iron front gates. The boy didn't seem at all perturbed, eyes simply following the large mansion as he brought the car around.

"Yeah, this is the place," he said simply as the car came to a stop. The cabby came out and around to open up the trunk and help the boy remove his single wheeled suit case, which the boy took from him easily and without hesitation in addition to the duffel already hung around his shoulders. He rattled off the total and the boy handed him several crumpled bills. A polite nod later and the boy was heading up the grand stairs to the front door as the cab pulled away.

He knocked soundly twice and wasn't surprised when the door was wrenched open a moment later by a brown haired girl with a pony tail and a pink cardigan- he recognized her almost instantly from the information card on student life. She looked at him curiously, with one eyebrow raised and Noah smiled charmingly, making the girl blush slightly and duck her head as she giggled. Holding out a hand to shake he introduced himself.

"Hi, I'm Noah Wright. I'm the new student here," as the girl moved to shake his hand he pulled it in and gave the back of her hand a chaste kiss, making the girl smile, giggle and blush as he gave her another winning grin. "I have an appointment with the Professor today?" He prompted.

She finally seemed to remember herself as Noah released her hand and struggled to fight her blush as she ushered him inside. Noah smiled and grabbed his suitcase, hearing her close the door behind them as he entered the grand foyer.

"Uh, hi. I'm, ah, I'm Katherine… Kitty! Everyone calls me Kitty," she was blushing furiously now so Noah gave her a reassuring smile and a wink. It seemed to reassure her, even if she continued to blush. "So, uhm, if you just wait here I'll, like, go get the Professor, Okay?"

Noah gave her a smile before his face went blank for half a second. Quickly grabbing Kitty's arm he pulled her back just as a brown blur sped by. Spinning her tightly to him, he brought them both to the floor just as the blur slammed into the opposite wall and a series of deadly looking spikes shot across the room, embedding themselves deep into the wall behind where they'd just stood.

"You okay?" he asked quickly to the now beet red and barely breathing girl beneath him. She only nodded meekly and Noah smiled apologetically before getting up and helping her to her feet.

"Is everyone okay in here?" Miss Monroe rounded the corner just as Noah was helping Kitty to her feet, the blur that had previously shot past them still laying with his head and shoulders on the floor and back up against the wall as his legs flopped over and he fell sideways, still groaning as he lay in a muddled heap, hair and clothes coated in ice.

"We're fine," Kitty assured her quickly, coughing to clear her throat of the slightly breathless quality her voice had taken on. "Thanks to Noah anyways."

Ororo looked to the blond haired boy standing meekly in the front hall next to Kitty and blinked in surprise. "Mr. Wright! We weren't expecting you until later this afternoon."

"I know," he said simply. "You're going to need me here before then though."

Ororo blinked a few more times before smiling at the boy wryly. "I don't suppose you're going to tell me why are you?" Noah just smiled and shook his head, and Ororo sighed. "I have to tell you, that is going to take some getting used to."

"It always does," Noah replied simply with a kind smile. His expression flickered for half a second before, for the second time that day, he reached out and grabbed someone's arm. He had pulled Ms. Monroe off to the side just in time to see a gangly teenager materialize not a foot above where she'd been standing in a puff of smoke. The second boy landed in a muddled heap, clothes covered in frost as he pushed himself up, rubbing the back of his head where several large chunks of ice were still caught in his hair. "It always this exciting around here? I may have to start charging for rescuing pretty damsels in distress if this keeps up."

Kitty giggled and blushed again, she seemed to be doing that a lot, and Ororo just shot him a wry smile. The groaning boy before him suddenly realized that there was an unfamiliar voice behind him and turned so quickly that Noah was afraid he would get whiplash. Wide eyes stared at Noah before glancing down at his own hands and sighing in relief, a tentative smile crossing his face as he looked back up at the new boy. But now it was Noah who wasn't smiling, instead looking at the boy before him with an intense sort of confused scrutiny. Apparently realizing what he was doing, he quickly changed his expression, but was unable to completely relax from his guarded posture.

"So, you make it a habit to drop in on people often?"

"Only vhen zhere's nozing better to do," the other boys thick accent did nothing to take away from the brilliance of his megawatt grin, however careful it was. "Names Kurt Vagner. Ju must be ze new student, Ja?"

Noah continued to stare at the boy a moment longer, gaze narrowed, before his expression once again flickered with the familiar blankness. It lasted only a second, but when it was over he was smiling openly and honestly at the German boy before him.

"Yeah, name's Noah. Noah Wright," he smiled genuinely and held his hand out for the other boy to shake. Kurt's gaze flickered to Noah's outstretched palm briefly before the bleached blond African American boy who'd whizzed by him earlier, before his impromptu introduction to Mr. Wall, slapped his palm down in a complicated high five / secret hand shake combination.

"Hey man, names Evan 'Trick Master' 'Spike' Jones. How's it hangin'?" He meant it to seem jovial, grinning as he introduced himself, but Noah could see the relieved expression on the boys face behind him. It was a diversionary tactic and they all knew it. But if Kurt didn't want to share his secrets just yet, then Noah wasn't going to be the one to push him into it.

"Long and strong man," he answered with a sly grin on his face, quiet enough so that only the boys could make out his words, leaving Kitty and Ororo somewhat confused only a few feet away as both boys snickered. Speaking up again so that the girls could hear him, he couldn't resist throwing a pointed barb Spike's way. "You do a pretty good impersonation of a crash test dummy man. There a convention going on or something' I should know about?"

Now it was everyone else's turn to snicker as Evan glared at the new comer for half a moment, sizing the boy up, before breaking into his own crooked grin.

"You know what man?" Evan asked confidently

"Know. But I'm sure you're going to tell me," Noah shot back calmly.

"You're all right… for a guy from _Queens_ that is."

"Glad you approve," Noah quipped wryly.

"Why don't you two show Noah to his room?" Ororo suggested pointedly. "He's going to be bunking with you Kurt. The Professor organized the placement." Ororo had cut off Kurts objection before the words even left his mouth. "Noah, when you're done getting settled just have either Evan or Kurt show you to the Professor's office. He'll want to be speaking to you before classes start this week."

Noah nodded tersely, though Storm got the distinct impression that he hadn't truly needed to hear any of this. He was already shouldering his bag and leaning towards the grand stair case, prepared to ascend the steps upon Ororo's permission to leave, apparently not needing any direction at all. Ororo sighed and waved her hand loosely towards the stairs, receiving a somewhat apologetic and good humored smiled from Noah as he climbed the stair case- his two 'tour guides' in tow. She turned back to double check and see if Kitty was hurt, or needed any further help, but, to her great surprise, the slender brunette was already gone.

"Like, OMG!" Rogue rolled her eyes as the high strung valley girl came barging into her room, quickly shutting the door behind her and looking excitedly at the two girls before her. The Goth blew her white strand of hair out of her eyes and turned back to her book, clearing displaying her un-enthusiasm, while her roommate just looked up at the girl in mild surprise and tolerance, waiting for the overexcited girl to get to the point. It was rather like dealing with a small child when Kitty got overly excited. "You know how we're, like, getting a new student?"

"Yes, Kitty. The Professor told us last week," Rogue said condescendingly. The younger girl didn't seem to notice the tone amidst her own excitement.

"Well I just met him," Kitty squealed excitedly. Rogue groaned in frustration, but her roommate simply raised a beautifully arched eyebrow at the younger girl.

"Is he nice?"

"He's more than _nice_ Ally!" Kitty spewed excitedly. "He's absolutely drop dead gorgeous! AND he's, like, a total gentleman! He pulled me out of the way and, like, totally saved me when Spike was about to flatten me!"

"Oh yeah?" Ally responded, sounding vaguely interested now that the prospect of a new, _hot_, student was about. Even Rogue was perking up her ears a little more. As a strict rule, Xaviers students were not allowed to date within their own ranks. When you had to put your life in someone else's hands on a semi-regular basis, inter-team dating wasn't really such a good idea. Still… that didn't mean one couldn't look at the menu even if you weren't going to order. "What's he look like?"

"He's tall, but not too tall. Like, maybe just under six foot?" Kitty said, hands gesturing excitedly as Ally set aside her book and leaned forward, the two girls sitting Indian style on Ally's bed as Rogue sat up a little straighter and leaned in a little to hear what the other girl was saying. Kitty's eyes stared at the wall across from her, eyes glazed over slightly as she tried to recall every exact detail of the new boys appearance. "He had strong, broad shoulders and a good figure. Trim, like he keeps busy but not bulky like he works out or anything. He has this shaggy dirty blond hair thing going for him and, OH! He has _the_ most stunning blue eyes you've ever seen! It's like you could just melt in them and float away…"

Kitty's voice had taken on a dreamy sort of quality as it faded away, obviously enjoying every last detail of the mental image she had recalled. Ally just raised an eyebrow and gave her roommate a glance, her small smile twisting into a wry smirk when she saw the Goth's honest interest.

"Up for a little super sleuthing?" Ally asked mischievously before turning back to face Kitty. "Where did you say he was staying?"

"Oh, he's like, rooming with Kurt," Kitty supplied easily. A concerned furrow creased Rogues forehead at the news.

"Is Kurt okay with that?"

"Like, how should I know?" Kitty asked impatiently. "The Professor assigned the room. Besides, it's like, totally not fair that Kurt always gets his own room anyways." Kitty looked honestly aggravated at the fact that if anyone got their own room, it was Kurt and not herself.

"You know how Kurt is with new people!" Rogue snapped defensively. "Does this new kid even know about Kurt's real form?"

"Oh yeah, that," Kitty said distractedly, wrinkling her nose. Ally had long since stood and had to carefully place a restraining hand on her roommates clothed shoulder to stop her from launching herself across the room and draining the air headed valley girl. "I don't, like, think so. He was wearing his hologram when they met or whatever."

Ally had to fight rolling her eyes. Despite how easily her own feelings were hurt, Kitty very rarely regarded the feelings of those around her… unless of course it was a recent breakup and there was going to be a lot of bashing going on. Giving Rogue a meaningful look she nodded towards the door.

"Hey. Like, where are you two going?"

"We're going to go check on Kurt," Ally said succinctly, in an unusually harsh tone for the usually easy going girl. Kitty looked surprised at the tone and, in her shock, didn't follow them. She sat alone in the now empty dorm room for a moment before shrugging her shoulders and leaving to go to her own room to find something to amuse herself with.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

"Sweet digs," the new boy said calmly, looking around the room with mild interest. It was spacious, even with two queen sized beds, the large desk space in the corner, and the a large wardrobe and dresser placed along the walls. It was fairly obvious which bed was being used as the covers were ruffled and askew, but not horribly messy. He tossed his own bag down on the free bed as Evan and Kurt stood in the doorway, watching him somewhat cautiously. Kurt was tense, watching Noah as though he was terrified that the older boy would lash out at him for something and it would just break him. Evan tried to feign non-challance as he walked over to the desk and, turning the chair around so that he could sit in it backwards, sat with his chin resting on his folded arms. "So, how long have you guys been here?"

The topic was forced, but nobody questioned it, eager as they were to fill the gaping silence in the room. "A year and a half," was Evan's easy answer. "Kurt's been here about six months longer than me though."

"Yeah?" Noah asked, looking to the nervous German for confirmation. Kurt just nodded, not really even sure what he was agreeing to. In his mind he was running through every stunt and prank he'd pulled in the last two years, trying desperately to find the one that had broken the camels back and made the Professor so angry with him that he now had a roommate. He unconsciously wrapped his arms around himself, trying to hide, to melt away into the wall. He was so lost in thought that he practically jumped out of his skin when he heard a knock on the door frame just a few inches to his left.

"Anyone home?" Ally asked unnecessarily. The door was wide open and she had a clear view of the room, but she waited for permission to enter anyway.

"Hey Ally. You met the new kid yet?" Evan asked, trying to hide the relief in his voice as the two girls entered the room at his unspoken invitation. Rogue immediately made her way to her brothers side and carefully wrapped her arms around on of his, carefully holding one of his hands in both of her gloved ones and she forced him to partially unwind his grip on himself. Kurt wasn't looking anyone in the eye, which was never a good sign. Squeezing her foster brothers hand tightly, she finally got him to look her in the eye. He was terrified.

"Guys? Uhm, no offense, but whatever big dark secret it is that you're keeping from me, could you kind of just… spit it out?" Rogue turned to look at the new boy with a reproving glare, but stopped when she saw the acceptance and compassion in his cerulean blue eyes. Kitty had most certainly been right about one thing- he was definitely easy on the eyes. But it was his own eyes, his stunning blue orbs starring straight through her and her brother, that finally prompted Kurt to speak.

"Promise me you won't scream." Kurt said in all seriousness, his eyes now with that familiar defensive hard edge that they sometimes took on.

"Uhm… okay?" the boy said, one eyebrow raised. Kurt shot a last look at Rogue, who nodded supportively, before pulling his arm free from her grasp and hitting the little red button sunk into the surface of his watch. As the hologram flickered and died, revealing the world famous Nightcrawler in all his blue furred glory, everyone waited for the inevitable gasp of horror and shock that was bound to come from the new kid… except, it never did. Finally looking up in confusion, Kurt saw the new kid sitting on the bed, exactly where he'd been before, with one eyebrow raised and looking at him expectantly.

"Is that it?" Kurt looked down at himself to double check that the hologram had indeed turned off. Sure enough, there he was, all blue fur, three fingered hands, degrigated legs and demonic accessory features; fangs, glowing yellow eyes, pointed ears and spade tipped tail snaking up behind him. He looked back up in confusion at the apparently unimpressed teen before him. "Now, don't get me wrong. The blue is a very nice color but, aside from occasional shedding, what's the big deal?"

"You're not afraid of me?" Kurt asked honestly, his earnest gaze starring intently at the boy before him. Then he got the reaction that he had never in a million years expected- Noah laughed. And laughed. And continued to laugh until he realized that no one else seemed to find the situation funny.

"Oh, you're serious?" Noah asked, trying desperately to restrain his laughter. "No offence dude, but I've seen scarier lint bunnies in the dryer at home."

"But…" Kurt was really and honestly confused now. "I look like un Daemon."

"Demon?" Noah asked while struggling to choke back another bout of laughter. "Sorry to disappoint you man, but you look more like and overgrown Smurf than a Demon. Or maybe the love child of Legolas and Smurfette- but definitely not a demon."

Kurt could only stare and blink, and blink and stare, and then stare and blink some more as his new roommate regarded him with a wry smile. None of them seemed to have heard Storm as she'd come down the hall, but all heads turned towards her when she knocked faintly on the open door frame.

"Noah, the professor will see you now." Noah nodded politely and gave the rest of them a sloppy two finger salute as he hopped off the bed and made his way out the door to follow Ororo down the hall. The room was silent even as they heard the pair of footsteps disappear around the corner at the end of the long hall before Kurt turned to his best friend, sister, and confidant with a wide smile on his face.

"I zink I like him."

"That was a nice thing you just did for him," Ororo said fondly, passing the young man at her side a faint smile as they made their way down the hall and up a flight of steps to the Professor's office.

"Kurt's a good kid with a good heart. And he'll be a good man one day," Noah declared simply, as if the facts were irrefutable. "He just needs to be reminded of that some times."

Ororo smiled faintly. She'd made the same observations of the boy herself, but she'd known him for over two years. Noah hadn't known the boy even twenty minutes and he'd already apparently come to the same conclusion. The boy's powers astounded her sometimes, and she constantly found herself underestimating his reach. But it didn't fail to cause her some worry as well. If the boy were truly as powerful as the Professor inclined and were to turn to the side of, oh, say Magneto… Ororo had to suppress a spine chilling shudder at the vary thought. The Professor's door was closed, as it usually was, and she knocked politely to let the Professor know that they were there… not that she needed to. An equally polite 'come in' issued from the room not half a moment later and Ororo nodded to Noah as she gesture for him to enter before leaving his side. She made one last glance over her shoulder as she reached the end of the hall to be sure the boy had entered and felt as though a freezing hold ice pick had been struck through her spine at the base of her skull when she saw the boys crushingly dark blue eyes starring back at her before he turned and shut the door behind him, breaking the spell.

Ororo shook herself, standing in the hall for several moments and shaking like a leaf, not able to brush off the feeling of cold that had leached it's way through her body and her being to touch the tips of it's long, icy finger to scratch lightly against her vary core. As her senses returned to her she decided very suddenly that she no longer wished to be inside the manor and quickly made her way out into the gardens, hoping that the late afternoon sun would warm away the icy chill that had settled into her bones.

"Please, my boy, take a seat," Professor Charles Xavier nodded congenially towards one of the large, and surprisingly comfortable, upholstered chairs arranged before his desk. With the curved wall of windows behind him displaying a beautiful view of the grounds and bookshelves lining the walls to his left and to his right with a collection of rare and obviously well loved novels collected over a life time, he provided not only an impressive first impression, but also a great place of comfort to both himself and his students in their times of greatest need. "I hope your first introductions to the students and to our facilities have been agreeable?"

"Cool place," Noah said simply as he lowered himself into one of the seats in front of the Professor's desk. Xavier didn't fail to notice how the boy was careful to keep the doorway in his line of sight.

"And I don't suppose you're going to tell me exactly why you've decided to arrive at our fair institution over three hours early?" Charles asked curiously. The boy just smiled tiredly and shook his head, not that Xavier had really ever expected an answer in the first place. "Very well then. I've already arranged for some of your summer courses to be taken out of the way so that the only core requirement you have left to fill for your high school diploma is senior English and an elective each in the humanities and in the physical sciences, which shouldn't be of much difficulty to you. We can take a look at what local high schools have to offer over summer school or you could simply do an independent study and take your exams whenever you like to finish out the credits."

"I can take the English Lit exam in two weeks if you can get me the approved booklist for the final essay. I can take the exam for basic high school Psychology at the same time and the exam of high school physics at the end of the month."

There was no arrogance in Noah's statements, just simple fact. And though Charles had composure enough not to appear too thoroughly shocked or astounded, he did raise his eyebrow questioningly, to which Noah only shrugged.

"Very well then," Charles conceded with a remarkable amount of calm and only just the barest clearing of his throat. "I'll arrange times and dates for the exams then. As far as the required Institute courses go you will be assigned to a team based on your age, abilities and experience in the training room. We will assess your abilities in a solo danger room session sometime during the coming week and then possibly follow up with a few team scenarios. Other than that you will have to take basic mechanics with the rest of your age group for six weeks during the later part of the summer and survival training with Mr. Logan for the remaining four weeks of the course when he returns… soon."

"I wouldn't worry too much about Mr. Logan, sir. He'll be home in time for dinner," Noah stated simply. Charles couldn't be sure, but he thought he saw the barest glimmer of something flash through the boys eyes before the young man tightly suppressed a grimace on his pursed lips. Knowing better than to ask, Charles simply nodded and excused the boy, who left more than readily, leaving the Professor to ponder the strange young man and try to shake off the sudden feeling of cold as he sat behind his spacious desk.


	6. Chapter 6

_**Chapter Six**_

Noah didn't stop when Kitty waved and giggled excitedly at him, didn't acknowledge Evan's loose what's up, and didn't answer Kurt's invitation for pizza and video games that night. He made his way straight towards the front living room and immediately set to moving aside the glass and wood framed coffee table and the large plasma screen, pulling back the large, squishy leather couch before opening wide the large front windows that exposed a rather beautiful view of the garden, creating a large open space in the center of the room. Pulling out his i-pod from his pocket, he selected a rather calming ballad by Metallica and sat down against the wall only a few feet from the doorway where the beautiful caramel skinned girl stood watching him. If he noticed her presence, he didn't comment on it. It wasn't long until a pale boy with spiky blond hair about his own age also came to the entrance, only to give the suddenly rearranged furniture a confused glance before looking to the girl, and then to the new kid sitting along the wall for a few moments before returning the way he came. Noah shut off his i-pod, finally beginning to feel the tension ebb away from his shoulders before getting to his feet and looking intensely out the open window. A moment later the girl turned to see most of the students remaining for the summer, as well as Ororo, appear from out and around the corner. Her teacher and counselor looked curiously around the rearranged room before turning vaguely to the new boy and opening her mouth to speak.

"Noah, it is perfectly alright to make yourself feel at home but we usually try to discourage students from rearranging the furniture…"

Noah raised an arm straight out to his side, a universal signal to stay back, and Storm abruptly paused in her brief effort to move forward, falling silent as she fixed the boy with a confused stare. She needn't be confused for long though as the sounds of a massive struggle quickly reached her ears.

Before she had a chance to question him, two massive, furry, muscular bodies covered in sweat and blood and filth came flying through the now open windows and crashed hard onto the floor where the couch had previously been. It wasn't until the blond furry body had slammed the other up against the far wall that she recognized the now unconscious form as that of her friend and fellow teacher, Logan. Storm clouds quickly appeared in her eyes as the furry menace that could only be Sabertooth advanced on her unconscious friend, adamantium finger nails ready to tear the unsuspecting man limb from limb.

He never reached his intended target. Halfway to his unconscious opponent, he was stopped by the small, slender form of a young teenage boy, one hand resting gently against his massive fury forearm, and deep cerulean eyes that had only an hour ago sent shivers down her own spine now locked on Sabertooth's unwavering gaze. The boy spoke so low and so softly that Ororo wouldn't have even known he was speaking if she hadn't seen the soft movement of his lips. Sabertooth growled menacingly at one point, but Ororo still could not attack for fear of also striking Noah. She needn't have worried though, as the boys next words seemed to strike Sabertooth down, the larger man being forced to look away. The furry menace gave one last look at his long time enemy, but the expression in his eyes confused Ororo, before he turned and left, not even giving herself or the other students a passing glance as he leaped gracefully from the open window and padded off quickly on all four across the great lawn. Noah silently went to shut the large glass windows behind the man before walking over to the group and stopping next to his new roommate.

"Raincheck?"

It took Kurt a moment to remember his previous offer of pizza and video games with the guys, but he nodded and Noah smiled at him gratefully.

"Thanks man. I think I'm just gonna hit the sack if you don't mind. I'm kinda bushed." Kurt nodded again and Noah walked off without another word, leaving behind a very confused teacher, several very suspicious students, and one large, furry Canadian slowly regaining consciousness.

Noah woke up to the cool gray dusk of an early morning summer dawn. The sun had yet to even crawl its way up beyond the horizon as he slipped into his running shoes and old gym shorts. With sneakers held together with duct tape and a PE shirt with several holes in the front, he looked more like he should be running the streets of New York City than running laps around the grounds of the pristine Westchester Institute. The morning was cool and clammy, though he knew it would soon heat up as he pushed himself through the last several hundred yards of his three mile run. Ducking back into his room he smiled slightly at the sight of his roommate still sprawled out under the covers, mouth agape and sleeping peacefully as a slight snore filled the room. He grabbed a towel and his toiletries and made his way down the hall to the boys bathroom, unsurprised to find it empty. Twenty minutes later he returned to the room, changed, and made his way down to the kitchen to fix himself some breakfast in the otherwise unoccupied and quiet kitchen and then make his way to the Institute library before the clock had even hit five am. Only needing four hours of sleep a night _definitely_ had its advantages sometimes…

"I don't know man. I mean, how the hell did he know about Logan and Sabertooth? And what the hell did he say to that furry bastard to call him off?!" Evan exclaimed as he and his roommate made their way down to the kitchen. It had been the crack of eleven when the two had finally risen from the cave that they called a bedroom, and a slightly ebullient Nightcrawler was bouncing along in front of them.

"Oh come on guys. Leave him alone vhy don't you? You are just picking on him because he is ze new guy," Kurt defended. Evan and Bobby looked less than convinced.

"I don't know man, you didn't see the way that dude was zoning out when he was just sitting there in the living room… staring…" Bobby said, waving his fingers around in what he must have thought to be a spooky manner.

"Dude, you do zat every time a teacher talks to you," Kurt ribbed with a laugh. Evan laughed too and Bobby scowled, ready to make a comeback when the trio were interrupted in their quest for food by Kitty phasing through the wall in front of them and passing right through Bobby.

"Woah! Watch it Shadowcat!" Bobby snapped, freaked. Kitty didn't even seem to notice the boys' irritated tone as she went straight into babble mode.

"Like, Oh my GOD! You guys, like, won't believe this!" Kitty was practically vibrating in place as she spoke, eyes light up in excitement. "The new kid is, like, totally kicking ass against Montezuma's Revenge in the Danger room RIGHT NOW!"

"What? But that's, that's… that's Wolverine's hardest Program! Even we haven't beaten it yet!" Bobby stuttered out dumbly, mouth agape. "Who are his teammates?"

"That's the thing!" Kitty practically screeched. "He's doing it SOLO! Totally by himself! Apparently they've been at it since, like, eight this morning or something and he's been steadily working his way up the levels since. And it doesn't even look like he's tiring out at all!" The boys only glanced briefly at each other before Evan and Bobby stuck out there arms for Kurt to latch onto. Half a second later the trio had disappeared in a puff of blue sulfuric smoke and a flash of red brimstone, leaving behind only a very irritated Kitty and lingering smell.

The observation platform situated above the danger room was packed as the trio ported in. The Professor and Ororo were watching the scene play out beneath them with intense curiosity as Logan just leaned against the wall and scowled as the New Kid made his way through the course with ease. Jean and Scott must have arrived in late last night from their brief vacation away to Scott's brother in Hawaii, with Jean's parents in tow for the family holiday of warm weather and sunny beaches, and were watching the new recruit with intense interest. Rogue and Allie must have already been up here for a while and were watching with mild looks of approval, a big step for the normally somewhat stoic duo. Even Dr. McCoy had managed to drag himself from his lab and was watching the boy with open mouthed fascination as he carefully polished his glasses on his lab coat. As Kitty phased into the room through the closed hallway doors behind them the number of observers totaled a dozen, and yet no one was making a sound, just watching as the boy below bounded over hurdles, dodged lasers, and defeated an army of alien robot drones one at a time. The more startling aspect was that, though he showed incredible grace and some serious hand eye coordination, it didn't appear as if the boy below actually had any abilities to speak of.

Noah picked up a pebble and tossed it precisely, jamming the leg gears of an oncoming robot and forcing it to explode. Taking a running jump at the wall he didn't even look back as he avoided lasers and instead latched onto one of the waving tentacle arms protruding from the wall as it waved wildly, its fellows plucking at the boy in an attempt to remove him. With one particularly violent jerk, the boy launched himself, not to be confused with being thrown off, actually _launched _himself, using the momentum of the violently waving tentacle arm to land him on top of the fiercely protected hillside dominating the center of the danger room and pressed the red button that would complete his victory over the session. Noah slid down the hillside even as the 3-D virtual image receded, dropping the last ten feet or so and landing easily, looking up at the observation room in obvious expectance.

"Well done my boy," the Professor said comfortingly to the young man down below. "Feel free to take some time off and relax. We'll have to come up with a more difficult simulation for your team exercises so we can put those off until the end of the week. And I've gathered the reference materials you will need for your courses. I'll have Kurt deliver them to your room for you."

Kurt looked up, somewhat startled, having forgotten briefly that the Professor was always aware of his presence. Noah didn't seem surprised at all that he had drawn a crowd, and only just barely tired after his intense workout. He nodded and left the danger room without complaint and without a word.

"Told you that dude was weird," Evan muttered to him under his breath. Kurt didn't answer, but was saved from any more of Evan's comments by Wolverine stalking past with a low growl that shut the boy up instantly.


	7. Chapter 7

_Chapter Seven_

**The room was apparently empty when Kurt got back, and he set the folder that the Professor had given him on the shared desk in their room. Noah had apparently already unpacked, all of this things fitting easily into the dresser by his bed and a little in their shared closet, which worked out fine for Kurt as he kept nearly all of his things in the large wardrobe along the wall or in the closet. Noah was no where to be seen. His bed was neatly made, just as it had been when Kurt had woken up that morning, an old and rather battered pair of tennis shoes sitting neatly at the base of the bed. The only recent addition from last night was a stack of rather peculiar books sitting on the corner of the desk, all of them marked with the seal of the Xavier Institute Library. Some were literature books that he'd seen on his reading list for next year, another for physics, another for psychology, and a very old and beaten looking copy of a book that he vaguely recognized seeing in his sisters room. Picking up to book he was met with the dour faced picture of a man he thought he recognized from the first Mummy movie. But beneath that was a stack of books that Kurt couldn't even pronounce the titles of, let alone read.**

"**See anything you like?" Kurt spun around quickly to see Noah striding into the room in a clean pair of ripped jeans and a nicely fitted dark blue T-shirt, toweling off his chaotic dirty blond hair. "You can borrow them if you want man. Just don't loose 'em."**

"**Uh, ja. Danke," Kurt said awkwardly, eyes still torn between the strange collection of books and giving a wary glance to his new roommate. "I 'ave seen zis book before," Kurt said simply, holding up the beaten and stained copy of 'Activating Evolution' and opening the pages curiously. "Mien schwesters roommate, Allie, also has one. Und hers is in similar condition," Kurt teased lightly, shutting the book soundly only to receive a puff of dirt, sand and dust in his face. Noah smiled faintly and laughed.**

"**Yeah, well. Considering that the book has been out of publication for nearly twenty years and that my dad had to go through some… interesting things to keep his hands on one of those puppies, I'd say it's in pretty good shape."**

**As Kurt finally stopped coughing he returned his friends wry grin, setting down the ancient book before speaking again. "Some of us are going out to Burger Bomb for lunch und zen maybe ve'll catch a movie or somezing later?"**

**Noah had his back turned to Kurt as he was pulling out a long sleeved black dress shirt from the closet and sliding it over his broad shoulders, almost like he was looking for what to say. "I'm not so sure your friends would be comfortable with that man."**

"**Vhas? Vhy?" Kurt asked, thoroughly confused. He knew that Evan and Bobby had some serious reservations about their newest teammate, but Noah wouldn't know about that. They hadn't even met for more than five minutes and they all seemed to get along great last night.**

"**Well, aside from the fact that Bobby and Evan are currently convincing each other more and more by the minute that I'm secretly an evil alien spy sent by the Russians to determine all of your abilities and potential as human weapons," Kurt made to object at the sheer stupidity of the claim, but as he thought about it realized that it was just absurd enough for those two to believe. "Kitty has decided that she wants to jump me, while Rogue is sizing me up as a potential threat to her sweat innocent little brother," Noah pinched one of Kurt's cheeks playfully and the blue boy swatted his hand away with an annoyed smirk. "Oh, and need I mention the teachers, who have yet to decide if I'm worth keeping around, if I'm going to turn on them in favor of Magneto, OR if I'm simply too powerful all together and have to be put down."**

**That shot Kurt out of his playful revelry in a heartbeat. "Put down? As in…?"**

"**As in stripped of my powers or imprisoned for life in a chemically induced comma. And if neither of those work there's always drugging and beating me to death and leaving me to die somewhere in Canada," Noah looked up, totally unaffected by his proclamations of his own demise, to see Kurt's face aghast with horror. "Oh, don't worry. Logan's the only one pulling for death and he'll be far too distracted catching up with his brother to think of killing me for, oh, at least a month or two. And the other two options would hardly work even if they could pull them off. Trust me, I'm not one easily caught by surprise."**

**Noah smiled wryly, but Kurt was still too shocked to return the gesture. His addled mind still caught up on the implications however. **

"**Your ability?" **

**Noah nodded absently as he sorted through the stacks of books on the desk, sorting them out and arranging a few on the free standing shelf above. But Kurt's interest had been peaked.**

"**Vhat exactly is it zhat you do? It didn't even look like ju had a power in ze danger room session."**

"**It's complicated," Noah said simply, obviously hoping to end the conversation right then and there. Kurt wasn't as ready to let the matter drop.**

"**Vhat? I've seen a lot of stuff in ze last two years, and I'm a pretty smart guy, or at least I zink so. I'd bet I could probably figure it out if you explained it to me."**

**Noah turned and smirked at the persistence of his new friend. He knew that his new blue furred companion would not be easily distracted from their current topic of conversation. Resigning himself to a very long and complicated conversation, he sat himself down on his bed to that he and Kurt were sitting opposite from one another, Kurt's faintly glowing golden orbs riveted on his friends tired gaze.**

"**Like you, I was born with my abilities. I just didn't know what they were until I grew older," Noah paused, searching for the words to describe something that had been so intricately a part of him since as long as he could remember. "You ever heard of the Butterfly Effect?"**

"**Ze crappy Ashton Kutcher movie?" Kurt asked, confusion lacing his thick accent. Noah laughed.**

"**Uhm, yeah. Sort of. Did you see it then?" Noah asked, still amused. Kurt nodded dumbly. "Okay, well then, remember how each time he went back into the past and changed something seemingly insignificant it had vast repercussions on the future, changing things in ways no one could have predicted?" Kurt nodded again, obviously recalling the movie as he looked confusedly at Noah. "Well I can."**

**Kurt's expression had gone completely blank by now. "So… you see ze future?"**

"**No," Noah said, a hint of regret in his voice. "I see everything…"**

**The room was silent for another long moment as Kurt contemplated this seriously for a while before slumping his shoulders and wrinkling his face in a weird combination of confusion and dismay. "You've lost me."**

**Noah laughed a little and held his hand out patiently. "Just… stay with me for a moment here, okay?" Kurt nodded attentively, honestly trying to understand what his friend was attempting to communicate to him. So Noah tried again. "Technically, my ability is referred to as being a Truth Seer. I see the past, the present, and the future, but just as I would see them, but as they truly are." Noah could see that he'd lost Kurt again, so he slowed down and tried it again from a different angle. "You know how on those criminal law shows that even when they have three eyewitnesses seeing the exact same thing, they get three different accounts of what happened because everyone notices different things?" He got a nod. "Well we all do that, pretty much all the time. Based on our beliefs, our insights, and our life experiences we all see things in a different way. It's why two people with the same core values can disagree on something- they each see the situation in a different light." Kurt nodded slowly as a vague grasp of realization began to take hold. "Me? I see things in every light. The whole prism spectrum of colors combining to create one ray of white light, supplying different colors even where they're lacked in nature so that what I see, when my powers are on, which they pretty much always are, is the truth. And let me tell you man, the history books have got it wrong on a way lot of counts man."**

**Noah's smirk seemed to bring Kurt from his contemplative stupor, but the boy still wasn't satisfied.**

"**So… when you were in the danger room…?"**

"**I saw the truth of each situation as it was presented to me, my capabilities versus what the room was throwing at me, the cause and affect a chain reaction of movement would set off. The action and reaction of my own body and off the computerized programming to each one of my movements. Every possible permutation of scenarios based on solely MY action."**

**Silence reigned in the room again before… "Zat is quite possibly ze coolest ability I 'ave ever heard of! You rock man!" Kurt said excitedly jumping up on his bed as he babbled on about the potential implications of such an enormous gift. It wasn't long before a second realization hit him though and he dropped back down into sitting position. "But… you said… zat your ability… it is always on?" Noah nodded. "Zen… you vould know every zing zat I am going to say before I say it, Ja?"**

"**Not exactly," Noah said contentedly, leaning back against the headboard as he stretched out languidly. "I can't turn it off, but I can most definitely tune it down. Ninety percent of the time it's on what I've come to consider a level one out of ten. Just barely there, like a spidey sense warning me if there's going to be any serious emergency type danger. Or if something really bad is happening to someone I know and I would find out later, then it goes off again so that I can help them at the time. Like I said - complicated."**

"**Vat vould happen if you vere to keep your power at a ten?" Kurt asked curiously after a few moments. Noah's smile faded from his face, leaving an expression similar to the one that Logan would adopt when you asked him something about a past he couldn't quite remember.**

"**You don't want to know man, trust me," Noah said quietly. "I don't even remember anything that happens to me if I go above a six. The human mind wasn't meant to hold that kind of knowledge or power."**

**The room had gone silent again. But this time, instead of feeling contemplative, Nightcrawler just felt sad. He looked long and hard at the young man that he'd fast become friends with. The young man who had a power so great that, even though he had apparently perfect control, he would always have to be holding back.**

"**Come on," Kurt said finally, coming to a decision. When Noah just looked at him in confusion he prodded the other teen in the side a few times. "Get up. Ve are going to Burger Bomb. If ze ozers have a problem viz it zen zey can just suck it up and get over it. If you are going to be living here zen zey'll have to deal viz it eventually anyvays. Now come on, ve are going to be late."**

"**I just have one question," Noah said as he made to reluctantly follow the blue teen out of their room and down the hall to the staircase. "What's a Burger Bomb?"**

**Kurt froze halfway down the stairs, mouth agape in horror and quickly launched into a full, loud, and very astonished explanation as to why exactly burger bomb was the greatest thing that had ever happened to the world at large. Much to the amusement of most of the teens now collected at the foot of the stairs, despite Evan and Bobby's grumblings of Russian Alien spies and how very much this was all a very bad idea.**


End file.
